The Solomon islands: the UN and intervention by coalitions of the willing

Abstract

The article examines the reasons behind the Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) and Australia's reluctance to collaborate directly with UN agencies there. In reviewing the RAMSI's activities, special emphasis is afforded to its relationship with the UN Development Programme (the lead UN body in the Solomon Islands). Policy recommendations are advanced for facilitating conditions in the provision of external assistance whereby both a beneficiary country and a regional hegemon can benefit from active cooperation with the UN system (based on ‘principle and performance’ instead of political convenience). Guiding principles include the need to: (1) identify and support, politically and financially, the comparative strengths of the UN system and other external assistance providers; and (2) involve local leaders in decision-making and coordination of reconstruction assistance. The recommendations seek to provide a framework for future UN system collaboration with regional and global arrangements involved in the reconstruction of war-torn societies.